Banks Still Building Business Case for Mobile Banking

A recent Forrester report reveals that banks still have high expectations of the mobile channel despite admitting to a somewhat hasty start with it.

Independent research firm Forrester Consulting recently released a report commissioned by payment solutions provider Clairmail that evaluates the mobile banking strategies of 10 retail banks in North America and Europe. The report reveals that while financial institutions are investing in mobile banking and their strategies are evolving, most of them never really built a good business case for it.

Most of the bank executives interviewed for the report said that they launched mobile banking solutions because they felt they needed to do it. They said that instead of focusing on a return on investment or building a sound business case for mobile banking, they've instead been focusing on improving customer experience through the mobile channel. And while all 10 banking leaders surveyed for the report said that customer retention is an objective of their mobile banking strategy, only four of them said that they have systems in place to actually measure mobile's impact on customer retention at their banks.

But despite admitting to a somewhat hasty start and a lack of ROI with the mobile channel, the bankers surveyed said they still have high expectations of it, expecting it to reduce costs and create new revenue in the future. Some of the top areas where the banks see potential for the mobile channel are customer retention, increased product sales, fraud prevention and direct marketing to customers.

The report, titled "Next Generation Mobile Banking: Strategies for Success," is available for download at Clairmail's website.